"What do you think, Grandpa?" Stacy asked as they climbed back into Steve's car.
"I can't believe how things became so bad for Joe and his family." Mark sighed. "It's terrible."
"I don't know about the whole sob story part, but..." Steve shrugged.
"Steve, you don't believe him?" Mark stared in disbelief at his son.
"Why not?" Stacy also interjected.
"Now, I didn't say that I didn't believe him," Steve said defensively, "but it does seem like a long stretch story...at least for a robbery. However, I am gonna go talk to the people at Marley's Furnishings, see if anyone can shed some light onto this."
"I think I'll have a talk in the morning with the pastor at the church the Slighters used to go to." Mark said.
"That's a good idea!" Stacy agreed. "You know, I sure would like to give that congregation some words to think about! They shouldn't be so unkind. Maybe they'll read one of my articles." She said squinting her eyes.
"Stace, you said that you wouldn't..." Steve started to object.
"Wouldn't what?" Stacy stared at him. "Dad, I'm not going to say anything about the Slighters themselves. I said I wouldn't, and I won't. And, I don't even have to specify anybody. But, if they had something to read about looking out for others' needs, maybe they'd rethink their actions and attitudes."
"That's not exactly what we legally call criminal material." Steve said sarcastically.
"It doesn't have to be." Stacy shook her head.
"You know, Joe said that he'd lent his brother money a few years ago," Mark stated, "and that he never paid him back. Maybe whoever his brother owed, came back for his dues."
"But it wasn't Joe who owed him the money." Steve said.
"That's true, but maybe the guy knew whom Bill got the money from." Mark continued.
"That's possible." Stacy agreed.
"It is possible, but then why did the man Bill owed money to, wait nearly three years to come after the guy who lent Bill the money in the first place?" Steve suggested. Mark just shrugged.
"I don't know." He sighed.
"His place isn't much to look at on the outside, but he's made it livable." Stacy told Kat later at home. "It's still pretty sad though."
"Duh!" Kat exclaimed. "Joe Slighter. I've met his wife, Jane and their little girl Minnie. They're in the system right now. I had to try to help them find living arrangements. With all the different names and cases running through my brain lately, it just didn't click."
"Really? You know them?!" Mark, Steve, and Stacy all gaped.
"Yes." Kat nodded. "Joe's sister, Lillian is nice and very sweet to let Jane and Minnie stay with her. Jane's still trying to find a job."
"I wonder if we could do more to help them." Stacy said wistfully. "I feel so bad for them."
"Well, Kat honey is certainly doing her part!" Mark smiled proudly. Kat blushed.
"Yeah, well, I have some writing to do." Stacy said. "My mind is all wound up with words for my next article and I won't be able to settle down till I type them out!" She hurried to her bedroom and brought out her laptop, plus a legal pad and a pen.
"Well, I'm gonna talk to Marley's Furnishings' employees tomorrow." Steve said.
Joe Slighter's coworkers and his boss all had good things to say about him and no one raised any red flags in Steve's mind that would indicate someone would mean Joe harm. So Steve pulled up a background check on him. Nothing came up to raise any questions either. Steve was glad to resign his mind to the idea that the incident had been just an intended robbery-it wasn't like the city didn't have many of those-, and so far as he knew, Joe's wife and daughter were safe and hadn't been attacked, so he didn't pursue the matter much more except putting some officers on guard to keep an eye on Jane and Minnie, and focused on his other cases.
Mark visited Pastor Reynolds the next day, the pastor at the church that the Slighters used to go to. "Yes, I keep in touch with Joe and Jane." He said to Mark. "They are good people, Doctor."
"Sounds like you don't share your congregation's views on the matter." Mark said.
Pastor Reynolds sighed. "No. And I've tried to get them to see the error of their ways, but it hasn't done much good. You know, Doctor Sloan? Many people think someone labeled Christian makes the person immune to wrong choices, and or tragedy. But if that was true, we wouldn't even exist. We're humans just as much as anybody else, with all the needs, temptations, and hardships of others."
"People tend to think similarly of us doctors." Mark chided. Reynolds smiled. "I can't help but wonder, though. Have you made an effort to try to persuade your congregation to step up and help their neighbor?"
"I have, in the strongest but kindest terms I could come up with. But several members of Joe's former company have very easily been excessively influential in persecuting the Slighters for something that should be treated with compassion." Pastor Reynolds said.
"One more question, pastor. Do you know of anyone who is angry at Joe or his family, to the point that they would threaten his life?" Mark asked cautiously. The clergyman gaped at him in alarm.
"No! I know my people are very stubborn when it comes to always wanting to have the last word in a debate, but I don't believe any of them would go so far as that!" He exclaimed.
"But, you didn't expect them before to act so contemptuously either, did you?" Mark pointed out.
"No, that's true." Pastor Reynolds sighed.
"I'd like a list of the names of your congregation, particularly the men from Joe's former acquaintances." Mark said.
"Sure, doctor. But why?"
"A police investigation. Joe Slighter was attacked and threatened last night in his shack."
"What?!" Pastor Reynolds gasped.
"Somebody wanted some money that someone owed them."
"Joe doesn't have that kind of money."
"No. And we'd appreciate whatever cooperation you can give us, and to see that the same trouble doesn't find his family."
"You've got it, Doctor."
Two mornings later, Mark, Steve, Kat, and Stacy were all eating breakfast at BBQ Bob's before heading to work. "Kat, when are you supposed to see Jane Slighter again?" Mark asked.
"Not sure. Probably in about a month." Kat replied. Jesse solemnly walked up to their table, hiding something behind his back.
"Something wrong, Jesse?" Mark asked, a little concerned.
"Uh, yeah. There is." Jesse said hesitantly.
"What's the matter?" Steve asked. They were all looking up at him curiously with worry on their faces. "What are you hiding back there?" Jesse bit his lip and leaned in close to them.
"I didn't want to say anything in front of a bunch of people," He whispered, "but, Stacy? I thought you should see this." He put a rolled up newspaper into her hands. She flapped it open to the front page. Her jaw dropped as she read the headlines and her face clouded over. "I wanted you guys to see this before anyone here started talking about it." Jesse sighed.
"What's this?!" Stacy gasped angrily. "I didn't do this!"
"What's wrong, honey?" Steve stared at her with furrowed brows, wondering what could've made her so upset. Stacy shoved the paper to his side of the table.
"There. Read that!" She huffed.
"FORMER TYCOON USES DAUGHTER'S SUPPOSED NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE TO GAIN PUBLIC SYMPATHY", the article read. "Joe Slighter, ex-chairman of Bartell's Industries has gone into hiding for the passed three years. Or has he? Two years ago, his young daughter, Minnie, was claimed to have nearly died from a car crash. It is a tragic tale of how she fought to survive, and how her precious parents scraped together to pay for the care she so desperately needed.
But, Minnie is a perfectly healthy child to this day, and is no worse for wear from her 'traumatic experience as a crash victim'. Joe Slighter has been slumming it up since the company of Bartell's Industries crashed. The ex-chairman was desperate to hold his reputation in tact. So, he came up with a brilliant plan on how to get in good with the city again. Dramatize the circumstances by paying a few, thirsty news companies to say that his child was on death's doorstep. And a clever plan it was, gaining the readers' empathy to the point that they wanted to give donations. But we have learned from a reliable source that it was all a farce.
Why, only three nights ago, one of the ex-employees of Slighter came to him asking for what was owed him, but Slighter refused! It is beginning to smell more and more as if Slighter embezzled his own company! And he is apparently hiding the money but at this time, we do not know where. No wonder things fell through, huh? Dead weight more or less. While we are joyful that little Minnie is healthy and happy, it is gross to think that a politician could be so crooked as to use his own family as a toll gate! Maybe now he will learn, sadly the hard way, that when you hit rock bottom, you've got to stand on your own two feet!
-Stacy Sloan"
"Oh, honey," Mark gazed sympathetically.
"I knew about those things," Kat said, "but I never gave it to anyone for the press."
"Neither did I!" Stacy growled. "How could someone do this to them? It's so wrong! It goes against everything I've been saying in my next article."
"Stace, your name is on it." Steve said grimly.
"Well, I didn't put it there!" Stacy glared.
"Of course not. We know you didn't, Sweetie." Mark said calmly.
"I...I know you do," Stacy said slightly quieter. "But this is awful. Why can't people leave the Slighters alone?"
"It's so prejudiced." Kat said unhappily.
"I'm sorry, Stace." Jesse said fervently. "I shouldn't have shown it to you."
"No, I'm glad you did." Stacy argued. "I've gotta go. I wanna find out who did this. I'll see you later." She grabbed her purse and hurried outside to her car.
"Whoever wrote this is a complete idiot!" Kat fumed. "There was raw footage all over the news when Minnie got hurt, and yes, people donated, but all that money went to her medical bills. Oh, yes. And I have copies of her records I'd love to shove in this creep's face! And the hospital has them too!"
"And several other things mentioned don't add up at all." Steve frowned.
"I think I'd better try to talk to Joe." Mark said. "This is gonna hurt him and his family, worse than they deserve."
"Are you sure that's a good idea, Dad?" Steve asked cautiously. "If he read the paper, I really don't think he wants to see any of us at the moment."
"Well, someone needs to try." Mark sighed. "Besides, I'm sure he could use a friend at this moment."
"Maybe you should wait and give him a chance to call you first." Kat suggested.
"Yeah, Mark." Jesse agreed.
"I just hope he doesn't think we betrayed him!" Mark exclaimed. Steve, Jesse, and Kat agreed.
When Stacy reached her workplace, she immediately told the director's secretary that she had to talk to her boss, Brandon Rutherford right away. The secretary paged him and he told her to send Stacy in. Stacy wasted no time and briskly entered his office after knocking. "Sloan, just the one I wanted to see." Mr. Rutherford said. "I was just getting ready to send for you. Will you sit down?"
"No thank you, Sir." Stacy said flatly. "I really don't feel like sitting down."
Mr. Rutherford nodded. "Sloan, what brings you here?" He asked.
"This!" Stacy wailed, and slapped the newspaper down on his desk. "Have you read it, Sir?"
"Do you have a problem with it?" Mr. Rutherford raised his eyebrows.
"Yes." Stacy said defensively.
"What's your problem?"
"I didn't do it, Sir!" Stacy blurted out. "I had nothing to do with this. And in the first place, it was written with no consideration for the Slighter family at all! It's based on lies and juicy speculation! And my dad and sister can attest to that with proof."
"Tell me about it." Mr. Rutherford said cooly, sitting back in his desk chair and crossing his arms.
"In the first place, the Slighters shouldn't be picked on just because they've fallen on hard times." Stacy said firmly. "That's prejudice, and so against what this country is all about."
"That doesn't mean it doesn't exist here." Rutherford spoke up.
"I know, but that doesn't make it right!" Stacy huffed.
"Go on."
"The Slighters are just a family who want to quietly live their lives and not give anyone any trouble, that's all. They've had a really rough time and are trying to make end's meet. They need help, not bigots."
"You make a very strong point, Sloan." Rutherford rubbed his chin.
"Sir, I didn't write that thing. I gave Mr. Slighter my word that I wouldn't, and you can ask anybody, I had not intention of publicizing this family's troubles! I didn't! And several of the accusations made in there can be answered by the police. Whoever wrote this twisted everything into a scandal, and it is far from the real facts!"
"Are you finished?"
"Sir, do you know who did write that?" Stacy asked, taking a deep breath after her spiel.
"No, Sloan. I don't." Rutherford shook his head. "But I assure you, I'm going to have a discussion with whoever did."
"You will?" Stacy's eyes lit up. "So, you believe me, and you don't think this was okay just because of our Constitutional rights, freedom of the press?"
"No, I don't." Rutherford said, standing up. "You see, Sloan, the article was only brought to my attention half an hour ago by Bob Mosher. He was upset about the content also, plus he insisted that you would never write such a thing. But, there was really no need for that."
"There wasn't?" Stacy asked.
"No. I didn't think that was you who typed this," Rutherford said. "It's not like you, and just not your style."
"Th-thank you." Stacy bit her lip.
"Now, I will get to the bottom of this." Rutherford said firmly. "You just do your regular work and let me handle it, you understand?"
"Yes, Sir." Stacy sighed. "But, what about the Slighters? This is going to hurt them."
Rutherford grunted loudly. "Well, all I can say is that you do your best to help smooth out the rough edges."
"I don't know if I can." Stacy said.
"Well, try." Rutherford said.
"Yes, Sir."
Mark drove to Marley's Furnishings after leaving BBQ Bob's. He entered inside and went to the administrator. "Hello, I'm Dr. Mark Sloan. I was wondering if I could speak with Joe Slighter?"
"Oh, well, he's not here." The woman said. "He didn't come to work at all this morning."
"Oh." Mark's face fell. "Is he not feeling well?"
"He's taken a personal day."
"I see." Mark nodded. "Well, thank you very much." He gazed around at the workers and environment before departing. As he was about to reach his car, he saw a familiar figure walking up to him. "Stacy, what are you doing here?" Mark asked.
"I guess the same thing you are." Stacy said. Just then, Mark's phone rang.
"Mark Sloan." He answered, then he grimaced. "Joe?" Stacy looked up expectantly. "Yes...she's right here." Mark eyed Stacy cautiously. "He wants to talk to you." Stacy gulped and took the phone.
"Hello? Mr. Slighter?" She spoke nervously.
"Miss Sloan," Joe spoke on the other end. He was very upset.
"Look, Mr. Slighter, I..." Stacy began.
"I have just one thing to say to you, Miss Sloan," Joe cut her off. "Stay away from my family." And with that, he hung up.
"But..." Stacy tried to speak, but it was too late. "He hung up." She looked up at Mark. He looked at her grimly.
"I'll see if I can do something about that." He said, patting her shoulder.
"Let me go with you." Stacy pleaded.
"Oh, honey. I really don't think that's the right thing to do right now." Mark shook his head.
"Please, I have to talk to him!" Stacy begged.
"All right." Mark nodded. "But I don't think this is the best time."
Mark called Steve and told him where they were going. Steve wasn't happy with the idea, but he admired his father's and daughter's sense of justice. He only hoped it would help fix what damage had already been done. Mark pulled up beside Joe Slighter's shack. He sighed and looked over at Stacy who was taking in deep breaths. "Stacy, I'd feel a lot better if you let me try to talk to him." Mark said.
"I know, Grandpa." Stacy nodded. "But I have to try. You've always told us to tell the truth, no matter how painful or ugly."
"And I wouldn't tell you to back out now." Mark smiled thoughtfully.
"No." Stacy agreed. They both got out of the car, and walked up to the rugged door. Though she was a grown woman now and capable of taking responsibility for herself, Stacy was extremely grateful that Mark was here with her. He had a very special gift of earning people's trust just by his kindness, and he could often bring them to reason too when they were acting out of emotions. She certainly hoped he could accomplish that this time too!
Mark knocked on the door. "Joe?" He called. "Joe, it's Mark Sloan! Joe, I know you're upset and probably don't want to see me, but...I just want to help you! I think we need to talk. Please, Joe." The door opened and Joe Slighter appeared. He looked more haggard than when they saw him the other night. And he looked extremely ticked off, a rarity for him. "Joe..."
"What's she doing here, Doctor Sloan?" Joe asked gruffly, gazing accusingly at Stacy.
"I'm here because I have to tell you something." Stacy spoke up for herself. "Please listen to me!"
"You promised not to mention us in the paper!" Joe growled, but there was an evident hurt in his voice. "You promised, but now I can see how much that was worth." Stacy bit her lip.
"Mr. Slighter, I'm so sorry for what was printed in that paper." She said sadly. "It was written with complete malice, and I'm so sorry! But I didn't break my promise! It wasn't me. I would never write that."
"Why should I believe you?" Joe glared. "Your name is on it and you were the only reporter who knew about it!"
"Please believe me, I don't know who did this or how my name got on it. But I wouldn't deliberately try to hurt you or your family."
"Tell that to my wife." Joe said flatly.
"She's telling the truth, Joe." Mark said.
"It's too late, Doctor Sloan." Joe muttered. "All of your well-worded apologies won't be able to shield my Jane or Minnie from the ridicule we've got now. This...this b-painted me into a selfish, money-hungry snob who uses his family as collateral! My family doesn't deserve this! I thought I'd made that very clear. They're hurting and there is no reason for it."
"No, there isn't." Mark and Stacy agreed.
"Miss Sloan, I'd appreciate it very much if you would leave...right now." Joe said firmly.
"Joe, I'm..." Stacy tried to talk.
"I don't need your kind hanging around, weaseling information to satisfy yourself with a juicy story, at the cost of innocent people." Joe glowered. "If you have any consideration for us like you say that you do, you'll leave my property...now, and won't come back!" Stacy stood there, biting her lip.
"Go ahead, honey." Mark said gently, touching her shoulder. "I think it's best."
"I'm very sorry." Stacy said mournfully, giving one last pleading, determined look at the run down man who looked as if he'd aged ten years in just a few minutes. Stacy walked away to the car.
"I don't want to see you around here again." Joe reminded her. Stacy climbed into the front passenger's seat of the car. "I'm sorry to have had to be so harsh with a member of your family, Doctor Sloan." Joe said. "But you must understand how much this is going to do to my family."
"I know, Joe and I'm very sorry." Mark said calmly. "But you must trust me. I can say without any doubt that Stacy didn't do this to you. She would never commit such a thing."
"I'd appreciate it if you'll just leave me alone." Joe said, turning toward the door.
"Joe, please. Let's go inside and talk." Mark prodded.
"Good-bye, Doctor." Joe snapped and shut the door. Mark sighed heavily and went to his car.
"Stacy?" He prodded gently inside.
"I hate this!" Stacy cried. "Why do so many media members intentionally abuse their rights just to hurt others and build up a name for themselves?"
"Greed, and selfishness." Mark simply stated.
"But it's not worth that." Stacy hung her head. "Maybe I can talk with Joe's wife. Maybe she'll listen."
"I'm taking you home." Mark interjected.
"But..." Stacy tried to protest.
"Honey, listen. We know the truth, and you've said your peace. I can't remember ever seeing Joe Slighter so angry. He needs time, honey, to sort this out. Let's just give him the space he needs, and try to help his family however we can." Mark said. Stacy looked at him sadly.
"All right." She threw her hands up in resignation. "I hope Mr. Rutherford can reprimand who did this."
"So do I." Mark nodded.
Stacy tried again and again to call Joe to tell him how sorry she was and that she didn't scandalize them, but he never returned her calls or answered. "How is his family?" She asked Kat as they and Steve walked together on the beach.
"They're doing pretty good." Kat replied. "I don't think they know about any of this. Jane doesn't read the paper anymore, not after the company dropped."
"Well, there's a mixed blessing." Steve said.
"Dad, any ideas on who attacked him?"
"Nope." Steve shook his head. "It's beginning to look more like just a failed robbery."
"I hope Joe calms down soon, though if someone did that to my family I'd be furious too." Kat remarked.
"But he won't even give me a chance to set it right." Stacy groaned.
"It's not your job to make it right," Kat spoke up. "You're not the one who did it, so the one who did it should be the one to straighten it out."
"Like they're going to do that." Steve said skeptically. "Kat's right, Stace."
"So, what am I supposed to do?" Stacy groaned.
"Be a friend." Kat said.
Who wrote that? And where did they get all those confidential details? And just who is this reliable source?